Las Vegas – On November 6, 2004, YANNI will tape his first TV special in seven years, and his first ever in America, from the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas.
The TV special will be filmed live from the opening performance of his upcoming YANNI LIVE 2004/5 World Tour. His last three television specials were recorded in spectacular overseas locations at the Acropolis in Greece, the Taj Mahal in India, The Forbidden City in China and at London’s legendary Royal Albert Hall. The show will be a 16-camera production shot on High Definition and will include a special Sky Cam, normally exclusive to ABC’s Monday Night Football. In addition, over seventy microphones will capture the audio for this special event in Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound. The special will be broadcast nationally in 2005 and will be available on HD television, video and DVD. The audio recording will also be the basis for Yanni’s next live album following in the tradition of Live At The Acropolis and Tribute.
Yanni’s television specials have been the highest rated music pledge events for Public Television over the last decade and his DVD/VHS sales for all specials have totaled over 2 million units, making his live concert specials among the best sellers in the video market.
This show will feature many of Yanni’s classic compositions and fan favorites including Santorini, Standing in Motion, Until the Last Moment, Nostalgia and Nightingale. It will also highlight several popular songs from his most recent album, Ethnicity, including For All Seasons, Playtime and Rainmaker, as well as, some brand new compositions – World Dance, Prelude and The Storm.
In addition, there will be some behind-the-scenes footage of Yanni’s band rehearsals and preparation for this TV special.
The show will be directed by eleven time Emmy award winner George Veras, who has produced and directed all previous Yanni TV specials. The set design is by five time Emmy award winner Jeremy Railton, who created the Opening Ceremonies for the 2002 Winter Olympic Games and has designed sets for Cher, Rod Stewart, Neil Diamond, Dixie Chicks, Phil Collins and Fleetwood Mac. Lighting design for this TV special will be by Peter Morse whose credits include shows with Madonna, Prince, Better Midler, Barbra Streisand, Michael Jackson and Shania Twain.
Yanni will kick-off his latest Yanni Live 2004/5 World Tour on November 6, 2004 at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.
The tour will visit 52 cities in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
Yanni will be performing with some of the world’s most extraordinary musicians and the concert will feature music from his last three albums on Virgin Records, as well as his much loved classics, which pulse with the rhythms and cultures from around the globe. The Yanni Live tour is nationally promoted by Concerts West/AEG LIVE, in association with Danny O’Donovan.
